Credit card accounts and FBAR?

[janell]

(Context - natural born Canadian, naturalized in Us when young, now trying to catch up with US since I learned I am still considered a US citizen)
After spending days getting my last five year account info for the FBAR form, I am now wondering if credit card accounts are also supposed to be included. This never even dawned on me, but when I read all accounts....???

[qweryt]

Credit accounts should not be inlcuded on the FBAR form.

[qweryt]

Credit cards are not considered taxable income unless the debt was forgiven.

[nelsona]

Credit cards are however covered by FBAR, espaciially if you carried a "positive" balance. Launderers will use CC's to hide money, Treasury knows thatand includes them on FBAR.

[mcmoxley]

The FBAR filing requirement would seem to cover "prepaid credit card" accounts only. And by "prepaid", I assume they are talking about what I would call a "secured" credit card. If I have a poor credit history, or no credit history at all (landed immigrant, e.g.), I can deposit $500 in a savings account and get a credit card with a $500 limit. If I don't pay the cc bill, the financial institution has my $500 to pay it off.

Presumably the $500 savings account would be disclosed in FBAR as an asset with positive balance, not a liability, like other non-secured credit cards. Why would the US Treasury Dept care about my TD VISA balance?

[nelsona]

"Why would the US Treasury Dept care about my TD VISA balance?"

As I said, if it was prepaid and had a positive balance (any card can be pre-paid, just send them a check).

Same for a line of credit.

[mcmoxley]

Good point about the line of credit...I hadn't considered those.

[baby_king_bob]

Almost any financial account you can imagine would be covered. From simple savings accounts to the cash value of life insurance policies.